Pregnant Food Network Star, Husband Murdered

Cristie Schoen Codd, husband Joseph disappear
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 18, 2015 8:49 AM CDT

A pregnant Food Network star and her husband have disappeared, and a man has been charged with their murders. Cristie Schoen Codd, 38, and Joseph Codd, 45, were reported missing by family members Sunday, according to the Hollywood Reporter; deputies found their pets and their vehicles still at their North Carolina home. Fellow North Carolinian Robert Jason Owens, 36, was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder and a count of murder of an unborn child, plus charges related to breaking or entering and stealing a laptop, jewelry, and a gun. Authorities believe the Codds died on Thursday, but won't comment on the couple's remains. Owens was a contractor the Codds hired to work on their home.

"He had done some odd jobs for them," the local sheriff tells the Asheville Citizen-Times, but he notes that investigators are still working to determine a motive. Owens was also a "primary suspect" in the disappearance of another local 18-year-old in 2000, though he was never charged; authorities won't comment on his connection to that case. As Cristie Schoen, Codd was a finalist on the Food Network Star competition in its eighth season in 2012. She had also worked as a stunt performer, a location chef, and head caterer for some big movies, and in minor acting roles, NBC News reports; her husband was a Hollywood grip. (Click to read about 13 more bizarre Hollywood deaths.)

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